The social science news portal Soziopolis has published a dossier on the situation of women in science. In “Wissenschaftlerinnen” (Women Scientists), the authors analyze gender inequalities in the scientific system from different perspectives, from the historical roots of categories of difference to the political semantics of excellence to the everyday mechanisms that shape scientific careers.
Lena Weber, Anke Lipinsky, Andrea Löther, and Nina Steinweg from CEWS were also interviewed for the dossier. The article focuses on the structural foundations and current dynamics of scientific inequality. The focus is on the precariousness of the academic employment system: the Academic Fixed-Term Contract Act (WissZeitVG) keeps the majority of academic staff in temporary positions, which conflicts with starting a family, caregiving responsibilities, and social insecurity, especially between the ages of 30 and 40. The interview shows that equality cannot be achieved through individual adaptation, but only through structural reforms, legal binding commitments, and institutional rethinking.
Read the dossier and interview in German on the Soziopolis website.